It's to hot in Houston to be outside without a pool from June to September.

Sea Speed said:

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Anyone install katchakid after the fact? How much did it run. I think we will need to get it.

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Ours was about $2000 in 2017. Then in 2019 I put it in the attic and put a fence up. The net serves no purpose when it's off so if you're in and out of your pool on weekdays and a bunch on the weekend it will pretty much always be off. The fence is great to shut the pool down during a party or to make sure small kids can't wander in. The net looks great in theory but it's not practical at all.

Take it from someone who paid for the net and then paid again for the fence.

The fence also keeps our leaves in the fall and you can still skim and brush. The net still winds up coming off in the cold months just for maintenance. It's a huge pain in the ass

Hmm, those are all pretty valid points and definitely something to think about. Thanks.

I agree with the pain in the ass points, however with the net I can completely ignore the pool / kids when it's on and secure.
With the gate I really can't as someone kid could jump over it or open it etc.

To me for the complete peace of mind I got the net.

Anybody have experience w/ pre-made fiberglass pools (https://www.aquapools.com) or the shipping container pools? (https://modpools.com)

Our house is close to 6' off the ground and I wish I knew of the shipping container pools when building so we could have designed a deck around it.

Overall I think that complete peace of mind will be the deciding factor. The pool is geometric and simple and not huge so I think it will be less of a PITA than some of the more exotic shapes.

I can remove it in less than 5 min.
Putting it back on is 10 minutes but is more of a pain in the ass

We have three girls under 7. I do not know what we'd do in the summers without our pool. It's too damn hot! 1-2x we'll pack for the neighborhood pools since we pay an arm and leg for them (Cinco) and quickly reminded how lucky we are to have our own. In the winters, the hot tub gets used once a week and mostly by the kids. Plus, tv on the patio facing the pool/hot tub…Do it.

coolerguy12 said:

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Sea Speed said:

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Anyone install katchakid after the fact? How much did it run. I think we will need to get it.

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Ours was about $2000 in 2017. Then in 2019 I put it in the attic and put a fence up. The net serves no purpose when it's off so if you're in and out of your pool on weekdays and a bunch on the weekend it will pretty much always be off. The fence is great to shut the pool down during a party or to make sure small kids can't wander in. The net looks great in theory but it's not practical at all.

Take it from someone who paid for the net and then paid again for the fence.

The fence also keeps our leaves in the fall and you can still skim and brush. The net still winds up coming off in the cold months just for maintenance. It's a huge pain in the ass

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Agree with these points. Also, when the kids are playing in the backyard the fence will keep the kickballs, soccer balls, etc. mostly out of the pool (many of the leaves also as mentioned also).

Chose the catchakid fence to prevent constantly removing the net. The fence can be removed and rolled up (around 6 foot panels) when the kids get older or if you have a party and want less restriction to the pool.

The fence comes with deck caps you can insert when the fence is removed.

We have a simple rectangular pool 114' in perimeter and the 4' fence was around $2400 with tax. The 5' fence cost a little over $2700 with tax.

Installed in 2020.

Installed a new catch a kid net after weighing it vs fence in 2020. The deciding factor for me was the net is almost 100% foolproof while a fence is not. However, after several weeks with new pool and constant swimming, our then 5 year old twins were swimming well enough that we stopped using the net for every day use. We now only put it on when having people over with younger kids. It's easy enough to put on and off and much easier to store than a fence.

We still use the pool all the time from about now through early/mid fall.

I put a katch a kid on last summer in a new house. It was about 2500 for 20x30. I don't find taking off and putting on that bad. However, it was a pain for cleaning and I have tree close by. I added a leaf cover to this winter for about the same price. That's been huge to keep the pool clean with minimal effort on my side. Once we get into swimming season, I'll put the leaf cover up for the summer and just use the net.

When we were house hunting from 2016-18, we (mainly my wife) were adamant about not wanting a pool because of young children and another on the way due to a coworker of hers losing a grandchild from drowning in a backyard pool around the time we started looking. We realized that was a huge mistake not long after moving in.

Our kids want to go swimming every effing day, and honestly, I love sitting in a pool with a drink and some music playing. I hate going to our community pool because I hate having to deal with the lifeguards who are training to be PTTS employees. My kids tend to go over to friend's houses to go swimming, or we drive to Willis to swim in my brother's awesome pool and to drink his beer. My wife wants to build one, but I'm not spending $75k on something that won't improve resale value.

aTm2004 said:

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When we were house hunting from 2016-18, we (mainly my wife) were adamant about not wanting a pool because of young children and another on the way due to a coworker of hers losing a grandchild from drowning in a backyard pool around the time we started looking. We realized that was a huge mistake not long after moving in.

Our kids want to go swimming every effing day, and honestly, I love sitting in a pool with a drink and some music playing. I hate going to our community pool because I hate having to deal with the lifeguards who are training to be PTTS employees. My kids tend to go over to friend's houses to go swimming, or we drive to Willis to swim in my brother's awesome pool and to drink his beer. My wife wants to build one, but I'm not spending $75k on something that won't improve resale value.

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And THAT is why I'm moving next weekend.

Congrats on finding something

Thanks. Will probably be temporary and use it as a stepping stone to hopefully get a few rentals in the portfolio, but it will be perfect for the family for the summer.

I've actually thought about it. With the current market and equity I have, it's very tempting. But we looked for >2 years and this was the only house my wife loved. Paying for a pool would be better than having her reject a house for something effing dumb.

It may not have a pool, but it has a whole home generator, thanks to the previous owner being a pilot for Delta and stranded at his base in ATL when Harvey hit while his wife was home alone with the kids.

Yea we talked a lot and are kind of restless and both decided we don't need to love the home of its going to be temporary. We will most likely hop a few more times and then find something more permanent. We were waiting and waiting on the job im trying to get but because of the last 2 years of insanity no one has been hiring so we just had to take the plunge. I think the place will be great for a short time and good for us to downsize a bit as well as have a one story. Plus I'm just looking at it like we are making 30 year decisions by trying to get in to the SFH rental market.

I get in the water most weekends in June-September if it's not raining, so 15-20 times per year ??

Absolutely. I've had pools for the past 25 years and love them. Grill going, outdoor TV on with a baseball game, cold one in my hand and I'm in the pool. The only time I think about the cost is when the winter temps get below 35 and it automatically runs. I see dollars flying out of my pocket but then all is forgotten when it warms up. We pretty much use the hot tub year round.

While I live in College Station, I spend a lot of time on this board as I'm a Tine Native. Bought a house this year with a great backyard and I'm putting in a pool and hot tub. Big enough to get wet and have a beverage. Not a diving pool. My kids are out of the house; we have moved to what we believe to be our retirement home. I don't care about the resale value at this point.

Great thread. Saltwater or Chlorine? Pool going in this summer!

I think the whole "not improving resale value" line is a thing of the past. At least in this market it is.

There isbq thread somewhere where thst is discussed including with a detailed analysis by Jamie from red pear.

There was a 10-15 sq ft average difference in my hood or about 30k difference
So obviously not getting it all back but there is def a premium.

Yeah, there is definitely a premium in the Woodlands as well.

PeekingDuck said:

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Yeah, there is definitely a premium in the Woodlands as well.

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Same 2300 sq ft house on my street. One sold last July for $425k. Six weeks later, the one with the pool sold for $535k.

3 houses in my neighborhood are currently for sale. 2 with a pool and 1 without.

1 without is ~$2 more per sq/ft than one with a pool, and ~$2 less than than the other, which has a pool. The latter house is very nice (from pics) and the pool/backyard is awesome.

https://instagr.am/p/CuK3Y9dpfGp

Gig-Em2003 said:

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Great thread. Saltwater or Chlorine? Pool going in this summer!

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SWG all the way, especially now with the price increase on the trichlor tabs

Not really.

https://experthomereport.com/four-myths-about-salt-water-pools/

Anyone have or looked at swim spas?

We have looked a little. We like hot tubs but it's just too hot to really use it at all in the summer. Swim spas come with seperate and joined areas and you can keep them at whatever temp.